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Man, I remember stumbling on this project every few years. 5 or so years ago I remember being tempted to preorder one, but decided I'd just wait until it was re

Man, I remember stumbling on this project every few years. 5 or so years ago I remember being tempted to preorder one, but decided I'd just wait until it was ready. Now it just kind of makes me sad. Sure, some people will be really happy with this, and I hope they enjoy them, but for most use cases there's just so many better products out nowadays IMO. Because of the GPU it's not really suited to be positioned as an "open source friendly" design, and if that's not important, GPD has a lot of really good products now. Most aren't quite as small, granted, but I imagine a pinephone with a keyboard case would be a close match. The physical controls (especially for gaming) probably wouldn't be as good, though...

ekianjo 6y ago
> GPD has a lot of really good products now. GPD's keyboards are notoriously bad so far for their handhelds. The Pyra's keyboard is small but has been crafted to be quite usable for thumb typing. (Even the Pandora was quite OK in that regard).
- spijdar 6y ago
  Yeah giving it a second thought, I was too quick to praise products I haven't used. I should have said that I've heard lots of good things about. Still, given the price and performance deltas, I'm not sure the keyboard would be enough to persuade me, personally. The exact form factor is still definitely unique, as the article mentions, at least.
  - progman32 6y ago
    GPD MicroPC owner here. Keyboard is mechanically reliable so far. It's nice and tactile. Because of the width of the device thumb typing can get a little tiring, and there's no way to touch type (too small). Overall, while I'd prefer a full layout like on the Toshiba Libretto 50CT, I've no real complaints given the size and what I use it for (basic mobile troubleshooting and light CLI). That being said, if there's a USB keyboard within 50 feet of me, I'll grab it instead of using the built-in.
- GNU_James 6y ago
  I use microPC as my main mobile device. I'm posting from GPD right now. What's wrong with the keyboard, Sir?
  - ekianjo 6y ago
    I don't know about the microPC, but I used the GPD Win keyboards before (1 and 2) and the key placement was quite awkward.
    - GNU_James 6y ago
      I used my plastic human brain to get used to the key placement. Now I can type quicker than on a smartphone. It's all in your head, man.
  - epakai 6y ago
    There were issues with sticking keys on the microPC. On mine the mouse buttons can get wedged under the fascia at the bottom. Overall pretty happy with the keyboard though.
- guru_meditation 6y ago
  Writing this from a GPD Pocket 2 (see my reply above): The key size is very similar to a standard laptop for most keys. The key travel is longer than that of a 13" MacBook Pro, and I guarantee it because I use both daily. 60+ WPM after a few days of use. Have 80-100WPM on my MacBook Pro. The adjustment comes from having a QWERTY keyboard layout where some of the keys have been reduced in size to fit. Space bar is half the size, Return is the size of a standard key and you only get the left modifier keys (ctrl, fn, win, alt) and the keys past the letter P to the right are scattered elsewhere. IMHO very good trade offs as the arrow keys are full size. The coding keys (curly braces, brackets, pipe, etc.) are in a non standard location, so take longer to adjust to.
  - ekianjo 6y ago
    I was referring to the GPD win. The pocket is a different category in terms of size.
    - Valkhyr 6y ago
      Not that much really. I use both a Pocket 2 and a Win2. They are very similar weight and while the Pocket has a larger footprint, it's not a big difference. If you can throw a Win 2 into your bag, chances are a Pocket 2 will fit too and not make the bag feel any heavier. The Win 2 may be slightly more pocketable, but except for short periods I wouldn't pocket either of them except in cargo pants or jackets, and in those, either will fit. The real difference between them is whether or not they are made to be used primarily on a tabletop (Pocket) or handheld (Win/Pyra), and arguably the Win line is not primarily made for productivity, so the keyboard is quite secondary. Finally, I can't comment on the quality of the Pyra's keyboard since I have never handled one, but I haven't had any issue with Win 2's considering it's use case for me is mostly limited to the kind of things you'd use a on-screen keyboard for in a gaming console.
      - ekianjo 6y ago
        They are in a different category since the Pocket is not a "handheld" device. You can't use it without putting it on your lap or on a table. The Pyra and the GPD Win series can however be used, and are made to be used in your hands. That's what I meant, it's not just about the footprint.
guru_meditation 6y ago
A recent convert to GPD Pocket 2. Decades of programming experience from kernel hacking to 3d engines and distributed systems. After a few days reached 60-80 wpm (depending on the typing test). A drop of ca. 20 wpm from my 13" MacBook Pro. Installed a dual booting Ubuntu 20.04 Mate LTS. Comes with all the necessary open source drivers. Make sure to get the pre-baked distro for GPD Pocket 2 from Canonical's website. Intel Graphics acceleration works flawlessly as do all the GPU acceleration options in Firefox. Installing Compiz as a compositing manager really speeds everything up. Now use this more often than my Macbook Pro. In fact, the GPD Pocket's touchscreen spoiled me and now I keep pressing on normal laptop's screens expecting for things to happen :D. GPD's substitute for a mouse is incredibly precise, a huge surprise as my expectations were super low for such an unproven solution. Think of it as some sort of capacitive/optoelectric Lenovo nub in the corner of the keyboard. Ultimate hackery: The keyboard has a fan on/off switch as the Celeron provided has an operating range of up to 100C. So if you don't need the highest clock rate, turn off the fan with one key press :D Hoping fellow hackers appreciate this review. Of course, this post is written from my GPD Pocket 2. P.S. Also running Wine, PlayOnLinux, WinUAE and AROS. 8 GB RAM and 256 GB SSD make it easy to be cavalier about resource use. Performance wise you'll be fines as long as you're not compiling large codebases, editing large videos or expecting to raytrace animations in Blender...
- Valkhyr 6y ago
  Same here (minus the decades of programming experience, unfortunately ). I have both the original Pocket and a Pocket 2 (both Linux), as well as a Win 2 (windows, gaming-only), and I love them. Before the pandemic I used to use them very frequently to study (or game, with then Win 2) at coffeeshops because they use so little bag space and table space. Right now they're collecting a bit of dust mostly, but I hope that will change again once this whole situation is over. I would have been interested in the Pyra when it was first announced (in fact, I did follow the project for a year or so when I first heard about it in 2016 or so), but at this point there are so many better (and similarly priced) alternatives out there that I have a hard time seeing who would be the target demographic. Still, I hope they will find some success with it since they seem to have their heart in the right place.

ekianjo 6y ago

> GPD has a lot of really good products now. GPD's keyboards are notoriously bad so far for their handhelds. The Pyra's keyboard is small but has been crafted to be quite usable for thumb typing. (Even the Pandora was quite OK in that regard).

spijdar 6y ago
Yeah giving it a second thought, I was too quick to praise products I haven't used. I should have said that I've heard lots of good things about. Still, given the price and performance deltas, I'm not sure the keyboard would be enough to persuade me, personally. The exact form factor is still definitely unique, as the article mentions, at least.
- progman32 6y ago
  GPD MicroPC owner here. Keyboard is mechanically reliable so far. It's nice and tactile. Because of the width of the device thumb typing can get a little tiring, and there's no way to touch type (too small). Overall, while I'd prefer a full layout like on the Toshiba Libretto 50CT, I've no real complaints given the size and what I use it for (basic mobile troubleshooting and light CLI). That being said, if there's a USB keyboard within 50 feet of me, I'll grab it instead of using the built-in.
GNU_James 6y ago
I use microPC as my main mobile device. I'm posting from GPD right now. What's wrong with the keyboard, Sir?
- ekianjo 6y ago
  I don't know about the microPC, but I used the GPD Win keyboards before (1 and 2) and the key placement was quite awkward.
  - GNU_James 6y ago
    I used my plastic human brain to get used to the key placement. Now I can type quicker than on a smartphone. It's all in your head, man.
- epakai 6y ago
  There were issues with sticking keys on the microPC. On mine the mouse buttons can get wedged under the fascia at the bottom. Overall pretty happy with the keyboard though.
guru_meditation 6y ago
Writing this from a GPD Pocket 2 (see my reply above): The key size is very similar to a standard laptop for most keys. The key travel is longer than that of a 13" MacBook Pro, and I guarantee it because I use both daily. 60+ WPM after a few days of use. Have 80-100WPM on my MacBook Pro. The adjustment comes from having a QWERTY keyboard layout where some of the keys have been reduced in size to fit. Space bar is half the size, Return is the size of a standard key and you only get the left modifier keys (ctrl, fn, win, alt) and the keys past the letter P to the right are scattered elsewhere. IMHO very good trade offs as the arrow keys are full size. The coding keys (curly braces, brackets, pipe, etc.) are in a non standard location, so take longer to adjust to.
- ekianjo 6y ago
  I was referring to the GPD win. The pocket is a different category in terms of size.
  - Valkhyr 6y ago
    Not that much really. I use both a Pocket 2 and a Win2. They are very similar weight and while the Pocket has a larger footprint, it's not a big difference. If you can throw a Win 2 into your bag, chances are a Pocket 2 will fit too and not make the bag feel any heavier. The Win 2 may be slightly more pocketable, but except for short periods I wouldn't pocket either of them except in cargo pants or jackets, and in those, either will fit. The real difference between them is whether or not they are made to be used primarily on a tabletop (Pocket) or handheld (Win/Pyra), and arguably the Win line is not primarily made for productivity, so the keyboard is quite secondary. Finally, I can't comment on the quality of the Pyra's keyboard since I have never handled one, but I haven't had any issue with Win 2's considering it's use case for me is mostly limited to the kind of things you'd use a on-screen keyboard for in a gaming console.
    - ekianjo 6y ago
      They are in a different category since the Pocket is not a "handheld" device. You can't use it without putting it on your lap or on a table. The Pyra and the GPD Win series can however be used, and are made to be used in your hands. That's what I meant, it's not just about the footprint.

guru_meditation 6y ago

A recent convert to GPD Pocket 2. Decades of programming experience from kernel hacking to 3d engines and distributed systems. After a few days reached 60-80 wpm (depending on the typing test). A drop of ca. 20 wpm from my 13" MacBook Pro. Installed a dual booting Ubuntu 20.04 Mate LTS. Comes with all the necessary open source drivers. Make sure to get the pre-baked distro for GPD Pocket 2 from Canonical's website. Intel Graphics acceleration works flawlessly as do all the GPU acceleration options in Firefox. Installing Compiz as a compositing manager really speeds everything up. Now use this more often than my Macbook Pro. In fact, the GPD Pocket's touchscreen spoiled me and now I keep pressing on normal laptop's screens expecting for things to happen :D. GPD's substitute for a mouse is incredibly precise, a huge surprise as my expectations were super low for such an unproven solution. Think of it as some sort of capacitive/optoelectric Lenovo nub in the corner of the keyboard. Ultimate hackery: The keyboard has a fan on/off switch as the Celeron provided has an operating range of up to 100C. So if you don't need the highest clock rate, turn off the fan with one key press :D Hoping fellow hackers appreciate this review. Of course, this post is written from my GPD Pocket 2. P.S. Also running Wine, PlayOnLinux, WinUAE and AROS. 8 GB RAM and 256 GB SSD make it easy to be cavalier about resource use. Performance wise you'll be fines as long as you're not compiling large codebases, editing large videos or expecting to raytrace animations in Blender...

Valkhyr 6y ago
Same here (minus the decades of programming experience, unfortunately ). I have both the original Pocket and a Pocket 2 (both Linux), as well as a Win 2 (windows, gaming-only), and I love them. Before the pandemic I used to use them very frequently to study (or game, with then Win 2) at coffeeshops because they use so little bag space and table space. Right now they're collecting a bit of dust mostly, but I hope that will change again once this whole situation is over. I would have been interested in the Pyra when it was first announced (in fact, I did follow the project for a year or so when I first heard about it in 2016 or so), but at this point there are so many better (and similarly priced) alternatives out there that I have a hard time seeing who would be the target demographic. Still, I hope they will find some success with it since they seem to have their heart in the right place.